Ifeanyi Ejiofor, legal counsel to the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and a prominent human rights lawyer, has called on South East governors to urgently strengthen lawful local vigilante networks to address the rising insecurity in the region.
Ejiofor emphasized that these security efforts must be implemented within the confines of the law and with full respect for human rights, while focusing on securing forests and farmlands from the escalating threat posed by violent herdsmen.
In a statement on Tuesday, Ejiofor warned that the South East must immediately enhance inter-community intelligence sharing to confront what he described as a systematic and alarming occupation of rural communities by heavily armed individuals, predominantly of Fulani origin.
According to him, these groups have turned large portions of ancestral Igbo lands into zones of fear, marked by violence and lawlessness.
“The Igbo people cannot afford to suffer another orchestrated attempt at annihilation, regardless of the form it takes,” Ejiofor said.
He urged the governors—who serve as the constitutionally designated Chief Security Officers of their states—to act decisively and strategically in response to what he termed an existential threat.
“It is no longer news that Ala-Igbo, the ancestral homeland of the Igbo people, is under siege,” he said. “What is deeply unsettling is the deafening silence, lukewarm responses, and the glaring reluctance by those entrusted with our security to address this threat with the urgency it demands.”
Ejiofor highlighted widespread reports of killings, kidnappings, sexual violence, farm destruction, and extortion across Enugu, Ebonyi, Anambra, Abia, and Imo States. He said these acts have primarily targeted the most vulnerable—farmers, women, and rural dwellers.
“The heartbreak runs deeper when even indigenous Hausa residents, who have peacefully coexisted with us for generations, now live in fear and frustration due to the actions of these external armed invaders,” he added.
Ejiofor blamed the worsening crisis on the failure to enforce anti-open grazing and land protection laws already enacted in several South East states. He pointed out that states such as Abia, Ebonyi, Enugu, and Imo have passed laws modeled after the landmark Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law but lamented the lack of implementation.
“The emboldened activities of these herdsmen are a direct consequence of failure—failure to enforce the laws. Worse still, efforts by indigenous communities to defend themselves are often sabotaged, further empowering the invaders,” he stated.
Ejiofor’s statement comes amid growing concern over the deteriorating security situation in the South East, with increasing calls for regional leaders to adopt a more proactive and unified approach.
